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9 Internet Marketing Predictions to Ring In 2011 from the Team at Vertical Measures

As the New Year approaches, there has been a good deal of conversation focused on what will or won’t happen in 2011. To me, there is no better time to ask those around me for their personal predictions on what the New Year will usher in when it comes to internet marketing. Here is what some of the staff here at Vertical Measures think that we can all expect of the coming year in internet marketing:

“It may sound overused and cliché, but Local Search is huge and is only getting bigger by the week. Embracing, as well as understanding, the constantly moving target of local search and how companies can improve listings will continue to be the key to success for businesses of all sizes. Another very obvious prediction is that mobile search will continue its’ explosive growth. As more and more cell phones become web enabled and fully integrated with search, mobile search optimization will become a necessity for all published sites.” -Jason Hendricks, SEO Strategist

“I think the Internet marketing industry will flourish in 2011, as more and more people are continuously seeing its value. I also believe that content will become increasingly important – content strategy, marketing, creation and distribution – as it all starts and ends with content, in my eyes.

Additionally, I believe local search is going to thrive, as search engines seem to be relying more and more on customer reviews. I think brick and mortar businesses are going to spend more time on optimizing their sites and link building efforts with geospecific terms, as it is becoming essential. I also believe social media will continue to boom throughout the New Year, with search engines taking social cues into account.” -Abby Gilmore, Internet Marketing Specialist

“Big picture I think the Internet marketing industry will continue to pick up steam. It’s become an established fact that the future of most industries is on the Internet, and I expect even professionals like lawyers and accountants that have been slow to use the Internet for marketing purposes will jump on board as well.

For those already in the industry, I think varied anchor text will make a huge difference this year. In the past the thought was that you want to target specific anchor text that you can get ranking in the search engines, but now we’re seeing that you want to have a much more natural link profile. If the majority of your links target one keyword and one page then you are in trouble. Internet marketing specialists will take greater care in ensuring that everything is natural, mixing in that targeted anchor text with more naturally looking links.

Content will also be pushed to the forefront. If you want high quality links you will first need to build great content, and I believe the truly superb content will rise to the top in 2011.” -Michael Schwartz, Internet Marketing Specialist

“Predict the unpredictable, and more huge changes to come from Google. In the past year we have seen so much, from personalized search, real time results and the merge of local results, I’d expect more of the same, combining everything into one result page, meaning you need a complete campaign, and can’t focus solely in one area.” -James Constable, Link Strategy Specialist

“I think local search will really level the playing field in 2011. Having a well rounded internet marketing strategy that encompasses social media, local search, link worthy content, onsite optimization, and reputation management will be increasingly important. But at the heart of this is determining what internet marketing efforts are actually providing true return on investment, and more and more agencies and SEOers will need to prove that their efforts provide return.

In my opinion varying keywords and understanding semantic analysis to get at the heart of what SEM is all about will come to the forefront in 2011. Year after year we have to step up our game, and 2011 should be no different. “ -Kaila Strong, Social Media Architect

“I predict that local search as well as content marketing will continue to grow in importance and become leading topics discussed amongst Internet marketers. It will become absolutely necessary for businesses to integrate a local search marketing strategy as well as a content marketing strategy into their marketing plans.” -Sarah Moraes, Internet Marketing Specialist

“More demand for proof of ROI. More ways to measure ROI (and how they work together: # of links, value of links, rankings, traffic, conversions, # of fans, etc. Bigger emphasis on leveraging content you already have and repurposing it. Less focus on just links and more focus on holistic approach. Better understanding how digital marketing integrates with overall marketing budget.” -Patty Adams, Director of Client Solutions

“My prediction for 2011 is that the Internet Marketing industry will have to adapt to all of the new changes, especially with local results taking the lead in search and social media influencing rankings, as well as anticipate continuing updates to the Google algorithm.” -Kristi Hines, Internet Marketing Specialist

“Multi-channel online marketing takes hold. Your customers are online, searching for you. Are you there? The recession has altered how consumers use the web, as research has become the dominant factor when making a purchase. They are not just searching for product reviews, but consumers are now bargain conscious and are searching multiple times across multiple channels before committing to a purchase. Recent research indicates that consumers are still very hesitant to click on ads, instead today’s online consumer is more savvy and is spending time doing more research before making a purchase. To me this means multi-channel marketing is more important than ever. Your customers are looking for you online. Marketers must look at developing optimized content for multiple channels whether it be your company blog, location based, coupons sites, news feeds, video sites, or social media interactions.” -Arnie Kuenn, President

Do you have your own internet marketing prediction? Add it in the comments below!

About Elise Redlin

Elise is the Content & Marketing Manager at Vertical Measures, an internet marketing company in sunny Arizona providing services ranging from content marketing, to social media marketing, link building, and advanced SEO. She’s fully immersed herself into the world of content marketing and content strategy and is the managing editor of this blog. +Elise Redlin

6 Comments

steveplunkettDec 30, 2010

“content strategy, marketing, creation and distribution – as it all starts and ends with content, in my eyes.”

Chris von NiedaDec 30, 2010

I agree with Patty (and others of course) but I am seeing a big push towards a focus on ROI. Marketers and business’s have to ask themselves some questions about their Internet Marketing. 1) What is a conversion (sale,download,email sign up, video view) 2) What is the monetary value of that conversion to the business 3) How many conversions are there each month now 4) How much traffic did it take to get those conversions 5) How many MORE conversions (and traffic) will take it to get the ROI 6) Is what we are doing now getting us there? With this formula I think ROI can be identified, measured and proven and this will be critical to Internet Marketing campaigns in 2011.

Nick StamoulisDec 31, 2010

I too believe that local search will just keep on getting bigger, and if your business doesn’t have a presence, will find it imperative to do so. With so many people using local search for business, it’s a must.

Seo QueenDec 31, 2010

There is no doubt that content is still the king in SEO. Best of luck to all for 2011 in their SEO efforts